The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-05-29
=" A PALADIN OF FINANCE"
THE MANAGER OF THE AMERICAN
COTTON OIL TRUST.

ance, and What He Says Of the Gil
gantic Combination of Which He is
the Real Director-The Trusts Rea-
sons for It's Existence.
From the Chicago Tribune.
| Seated in one of the seepers of a south
| bound train on the st. Louis, Iron Noun
tain and Southern railroad one day week
before last was man whose portrait would
somewhat resemble that of w. IL. Wander
bilt. There were the side whiskers, the i'm
passive expression, the gold eyeglasses dang
| ling against well filed vest, and the gene
raj air of one not asking fayors. Seen in
the flesh the man did not 50 much resemble
the railroad magnateas he would photo
| graph. To utilize the face of another rail
road king for purposes of ex-
PLANTATION, it may be said that
there was suggestion of Jay Gould in
the face and figure. The frame was not
| large, the side whiskers were black and the
keen eyes were alight with an alertness and
an intelligence not altogether pertaining to
stocks and bonds. This man, whose appear
ance so distinctly indicated him winner in
| the money game of life, was Mr.. z. Urqu-
| hart, acting President and manager of the
American Gotten Oil Trust This is the gi-
| gantic combination which has secured pos
session of about 100 cotton-seed oil mills of
the country, and which absolutely controls
that great interest Mr.. Urquhart was on
| his way from New York to Little
Rock, Ark, thence to return at once,
| by way of Memphis, to the Eastern
headquarters of the company. In
| Arkansas are located number of the mills
which swell the Trusts possessions and
which formerly belonged to Mr.. Urquhart
1 Of
| the Trust, but is more than the title implies.
1t is he who actively controls the great COM
| bination. He has heretofore refused to talk
! concerning the enterprise in. which he has
| figured so prominently, but his rule on this
occasion was broken. He did talk to re-
porter. The talk was the running CONVEX
sation of two men discussing thing of
which one knew practically nothing and the
other everything. Mr.. Urquharts com
ment; may be introduced with question
put to him:
''What about the charge made, at least in
ferentially, that the Trust is gigantic mo-
nopoly, that it throttles individual enter
prise in one field-in short, that while it
may be a good thing for group it is not a
good thing for the whole countryg'
Mr.. Urquhart thought moment. "Well,"
he said, an tell you my individual expert
ence and you may judge for yourself. l con-
trolled different cotton seed oil mills in
Arkansas. had held an interest previously
in mill in Memphis, but had paid little at
tention to it. In Arkansas l worked hard
at building up the business. 1 labored
personally in the mills The outlook
seemed good, but there came a
change. There were other mills
and there was too much competition, not
enough seed was produced to keep us all
going for enough months in the year to yield
profit. We were in a bad way You can
see the outcome. The idea of a combination
occurred as the only recourse to avoid bank
ruptcy. The organization of the Trust &C
complished what was needed. Many mill
owners were saved from ruin. Mills in Ala
bama and North Carolina, for instance,
which have lately come into the Trust, must
otherwise have failed within year. The
debts which had to be paid for them in one
or two cases equaled the entire value of the
property. They were simply saved from
wreck Was not the Trust good thing for
these ownersP
"But ON what terms does mill come into
the Trust-or rather how is it taken in?n
"A mill owner thinks it advisable to come
into the combination. He declares that his
machinery cost so much, that he has ground
seed for so many months in the year that
the mill has purchased so many tons of seed
| and has produced so much oil, and he
places a corresponding value on the prop
erty. A committee of experts is sent to
look over his property, examine his books
and verify all his statements. If the ex-
animation results satisfactorily the mill is
taken in and certificates are issued for the
amount at which it has been valued. If
three are any debts these are first paid The
Trust has no debts.n
1.-THE certificates are then practically GER
tificates of stock in the big companyp
But suppose the mill taken in is owned
by a corporation as so many mills are?
And suppose you get hold Of a bare con-
trolling interest? What becomes of the in
terest of stockholders who do not want to go
into the TruStg'
''They are in about the same situation
they occupied before the deal was made
save that they get, indirectly, the benefit of
the Trusts management. They, of course,
get none of the dividends which may be de-
clared on Trust certificates, but the stock
company goes on as before. The Trust sim
ply manages the mill through its representa-
tive or representatives among the owners.
If profit is made a dividend is declared
The outside stockholders get their proper
ton of this Those in the Trust, of course,
turn over their dividends to it. Such divi-
dends as they get come from the Trust GER
tificates. We always seek to have one or
more of the outsiders represented in the
directory of such stock company"
You say the management goes on as
| usual oibCi DOuSuJ. 10 JOu HOD
put in Trust men to control it,"
Every rarely. In almost every instance
the mills belonging to the Trust are man
aged by the men who were in charge before
the transfer. Naturally they would know
the country and the people better than any
one else. Furthermore the manager is, if
he hold Trust certificates, directly interested
in making them as valuable as possible
How is he controlledW
"There is a system of daily reports to the
main office in New York. There the exact
condition of any mills business is known at
any time; the amount Of cotton seed it han
dies, It's production, its expenses, and its
receipts are all apparent at glance Each
report is compared with the others. An alb
solute guide is thus afforded regarding the
degree of earnestness and Judgment with
which each mill is being run. The mana
gers everywhere know this. They under
stand the test to which theii work is put,
and there is the consequent rivalry in making
good showings. In very few instances has
1t been found necessary to change the man
agement entirely"
The talk drifted away upon the theme of
the Trusts origin and organization. Mr..
Urquhart said he had not yet read Jenkins
"Paiadin of Finance" and it was naturally
suggested that he was man who might be
amused by it. He was asked if there was
any speculation in Trust certificates.
Yes; men holding them have made sales